The Air Force's disgraceful conduct at Dover: An editorial

The Air Force faced deserved anger and criticism last month when a probe revealed that the remains of several soldiers' had been lost or mishandled at the Air Force's military mortuary in Dover, Del. Now the Air Force has admitted that the offenses were much more numerous and shocking -- including sending to a landfill the partial remains of dozens of troops.

Dee Marvin, The Associated Press file photoThe Air Force mortuary that receives America's war dead and prepares them for burial lost portions of human remains and disposed of partial remains for dozens of troops by incinerating them and sending them to a landfill.

That's a disgrace, and it should result in severe sanctions or the firing of those responsible.

The Air Force mortuary is the first stop on U.S. soil for the remains of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Personnel at the mortuary are supposed to prepare the remains to turn over to soldiers' families for proper burial. But an 18-month investigation, prompted by whistleblowers' complaints, found instances in which some remains were lost or partial remains were removed from the soldiers without their families being notified.

Air Force commanders had acknowledged some of the problems but tried to avoid taking full responsibility. The Office of the Special Counsel, an independent investigative agency, said last month that the Air Force was willing to find paperwork violations and errors. But the special counsel said the Air Force's initial investigation "stop(s) short of accepting accountability for failing to handle remains with the requisite reverence, care and dignity befitting them and the circumstances."

Now the Air Force, pushed in part by soldiers' families, is saying it cremated partial remains of at least 274 soldiers -- far more than previously acknowledged. Those remains were then disposed of together with the mortuary's medical waste in a Virginia landfill.

The Air Force said cremated remains were sent to the landfill only in cases in which families had signed a form indicating they did not wish to be called if additional remains from their relatives were found, thus allowing the Air Force to "make appropriate disposition" of those additional remains. But some of the relatives of affected soldiers said they never imagined the Air Force would consider dumping the remains in a landfill as appropriate. And some families said no one from the Air Force apologized to them.

That's all unacceptable.

Officials believe the practice began in the late 1990s and extended until 2008, and it's offensive that this conduct went on for so long. The cremated remains from such troops are now buried at sea.

The Air Force has disciplined the former commander of the mortuary and two other senior officials, but no one was fired. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has ordered a review of that decision, and that's appropriate considering the extent of the offenses.

The bodies of service men and women who are killed while defending our nation deserve the utmost respect and care. That's not what 274 troops received. Officials said new policies are ensuring that doesn't happen again, and they'd better. But those responsible for the past mistreatment need to be held fully accountable.